勞工處 Labour Department

1 &' * This guidebook is prepared by theOccupational Safety and Health Branch, Labour Department2004 10 This editionOctober 2004 &' * & & &' &' * 2559 2297 &' * &' This guidebook is issued free of charge and can be obtained from officesof the Occupational Safety and Health Branch, Labour Department . It canalso be downloaded from website of the Labour Department at For enquiries about addressesand telephone numbers of the offices, please visit the website of the Departmentat or call 2559 guidebook may be freely reproduced except for advertising, endorsementor commercial purposes. Please acknowledge the source as "A Guide to theFactories and Industrial Undertakings ( noise at Work) Regulation", publishedby the Labour .

2 4 . &' 4 . 10 . &10 . 12 . 12 . 14 . 14 . &' 18 . 20 . 20 . Levels and the Main FOR Decide whether you have a Assess the Tell the employees Reduce the noise as far as Ear Ensure your programme is FOR Assessment Report form224 &' &' * &' * &' * & ' * &' * &' * &' &' a &' *85 (A) (LEP, d) b &' *90 (A) (LEP, d) c &' * 140 200 &' * &' * & ' &' * &' * &' * 51 IntroductionThis booklet is intended to explain briefly and in simply termsthose provisions of the Factories and Industrial Undertakings (Noiseat Work) Regulation which protect the hearing of employees who areexposed or likely to be exposed to hazardous noise while at work inany industrial undertaking.

3 In case of doubt, the reader is advised torefer to the Regulation and our Guidance Notes on Factories andIndustrial Undertakings ( noise at Work) Regulation, which affordstechnical guidance for proprietors to discharge their legal Guidance Notes are available free of charge from the offices of theOccupational Safety and Health Branch, Labour Department . Whilstevery care has been taken in the preparation of this guide, the Factoriesand Industrial Undertakings ( noise at Work) Regulation remains tobe the sole authority for the provisions of the law Levels and the Main are three action levels defined in the Regulation:-(a)First Action Level - a daily personal noise exposure (LEP, d ) of 85 dB(A)(b)Second Action Level - a daily personal noise exposure (LEP, d ) of 90 dB(A)(c)Peak Action Level - a peak sound pressure level of 140 dB or peak soundpressure of 200 Pa.

4 , a daily personal noise exposure can be regarded asthe total exposure throughout the working day, taking intoaccount the average noise levels in the working areas and thetime spent in them, but taking into no account of any earprotector worn. The peak sound pressure is the highest pressureof the sound wave, for example, the peak sound pressure is thesound impulse generated by a cartridge-operated fixing &' * &' * & ' * & * &' * 1 A &' * L EP, d 2 90 A &' * 140 L &'EP, d &1 85 A 90 A 2 1 &' * 3 1 3 2 28 &' * 3 4 &' * 5 2 &' * 8 3 &' * &' * &'10 &' * 4 2 b &' * * &' 5 a 3 444444444444447 Action required where L is likely to be or above.

5 EP, d(see Note 1 below)85 dB(A)First Action Level90 dB(A)econd Action Level(see Note 2 below)SProprietor's Duties1 Assessment of noise exposure-Get a competent person to assess (Section 3(1))-Review assessment when necessary (Section 3(2))-Send assessment report to Labour Department within28 days (Section 3(4))-Make assessment report available for inspection byan occupational safety officer (Section 3(5))2 noise reduction-Reduce noise exposure as far as is practicable by meansother than ear protectors (Section 8)3 Provision of information to employees-Provide adequate information, instruction and trainingabout risks to hearing, what employees should do tominimize risk, and their obligations under theRegulation (Section 10)- Mark ear protection zones with notices, as far as ispracticable (Section 4(2)(b))-Specify the distance for noisy machine within whichsuitable approved ear protectors have to be worn(Section 5(a)) Regulation requires the proprietor to take certain basic steps wherean employee is likely to be exposed to noise at or above the First ActionLevel.

6 These, together with additional action, must also be taken wherean employee is likely to be exposed to noise at or above the Second orPeak Action Level. The main requirements are summarized in thefollowing table: -Notes:(1) The dB(A) action levels are values of daily personal exposure to noise (L) .EP, d(2) All the actions indicated at 90 dB(A) are also required where the peak sound pressure level is at orabove 140 L &' EP, d &1 85 A 90 A 2 4 &' * &' * 6 1 &' * 6 3 9 1 b &' * 9 1 a &' * ' &5 c &' * &' 4 2 c 5 &' &' * 9 1 a &' *9 1 b & ' * 9 2 a &' * 9 2 b 1 A &' * L EP, d 2 90 A &' * 140 444444444444449 Action required where L is likely to be or above:EP, d(see note 1 below)85 dB(A)First Action Level90 dB(A)Second Action Lev(see Note 2 belowel) protectors-Ensure as far as is practicable that suitable approvedear protectors are.

7 -provided to employees who ask for them (Section6(1))-provided to all exposed (Section 6(3))-properly maintained (Section 9(1)(b))-used by all exposed (Section9(1)(a))-Ensure all operatives within the specified distance wearsuitable approved ear protectors (Section 5(c))-Ensure as far as is practicable that all go into an earprotection zone wear suitable approved ear protectors(Section 4(2)(c)) and use of noise control equipment-Ensure as far as is practicable that:-all equipment provided under the Regulation areproperly used (Section 9(1)(a))-all equipment are properly maintained (Section 9(1)(b))Employee's Dutiesuse of equipment-use suitable approved ear protectors as far as ispracticable (Section 9(2)(a))-report any defects to the proprietor (Section 9(2)(b))Notes:(1) The dB(A) action levels are values of daily personal exposure to noise (L ).

8 EP, d(2) All the actions indicated at 90 dB(A) are also required where the peak sound pressure level is at orabove 140 &' * & &' * &' * &' * Sketch 1 : Action Plan11 &' * Sketch 2 : A noise problem exists if people have difficulty in hearing from others3 ADVICE FOR PROPRIETORSThe action plan summarized at sketch 1 will help you decide what youshould whether You might have a ProblemIf people have to shout to be heard or have difficulty being understood bysomeone about 2 metres away, you might have a problem (Sketch 2).To be sure you will need to get the noise (A)? dB(A) Competent person &' * ' Sketch 3 : A competent person making noise assessment &' * &' * &' * &' * &' * & &' * &' * &' * &' * &' * ' &' * the NoiseYour assessment should find out whether the noise exposure is likely toreach the 'action levels', and provide enough information about the noisefor you to decide what action to job will need to be done by a competent person - someone with suitabletraining and experience and competent to carry out noise assessments.

9 Theessential qualification for the person is the ability to do the job properlyand to know his own limits. However, many technicians may need extratraining and the Occupational Safety and Health Council is providingtraining courses for the purpose. Alternatively you might call in the Employees affectedWhere your assessment shows exposure is at, or above, any of the 3 actionlevels, you should let your employees know there is a noise hazard, andwhat you want them to do to keep the risk to a &' * * &' * &' * &' * &' * & &' * &' * &' &' * & &' * &' &' * &' * &' * &' * &' Sketch 4 : Reducing noise at the noise as far as practicableWhere noise exposure needs to be controlled, the most reliable way ofdoing so will be to quieten the noise sources if this can be done (Sketch 4).

10 The Labour Department publishes some advice, and many textbooks areavailable on the subject. You might also be able to get help from yourindependent consultants. The suppliers of the machinery creating theproblem might also be able to problems can be avoided if you can make sure that noise reductionis built into new machinery when you buy it. Ask about them before decidingwhich machine to should also consider whether it might be possible to reduce either thenumber of employees working in noisy areas or the time they have to spendin them. Perhaps some jobs could be done in quieter ProtectionIf people have to work in noise -hazardous areas, they will need suitableear protectors (ear muffs of ear plugs) to reduce the hazard.